Long Distance
by KristinPhoenixx
Summary: A story in which a summer road trip may or may not turn a long distance friendship into something so much more.


_**A/N:**__ I've written this in light of long distance relationships. So, work with me here. The characters of Naruto -that I'm using- live in the United States. Sakura in Washington (currently -thankfully- glittering vampire free, but sadly also missing very good looking half naked Indian wolf boys. Considering I live near a rez, I would know ;] haha) and Sasuke is in sunny California. Oh, and Sasuke will have some serious out of character moments. I'm basing how he acts off someone I know =]._

* * *

The excitement in the car was contagious. Sakura had only been out of her home state of Washington a few times and never before without her family. The summer before Sakura and her best friend Ino had decided that they would go on a small road trip to Los Angeles, California as a way to celebrate the changes -for the better- in their lives.  
Warm sun, the beach and hot guys was a huge part of their reason for wanting to go to California. What girl could resist? But that wasn't the only reason for Sakura.  
Sakura had two best friends: Ino, who she was currently driving south on I-5 with, and Sasuke.  
Sakura and Sasuke had met online and quickly became the best of friends. Over the next few years they had grown even closer, the distance between the two not having been a problem. The two could predict one another's moves and feelings without having to be face to face.  
New feelings started to surface for Sakura however. Feelings that she didn't understand for she'd never experienced anything quiet like them before. She knew that she had developed a crush on Sasuke, but could it possibly have been something more?  
Suddenly Sakura found herself thinking about Sasuke all of the time, even without meaning to. He just had a way of creeping his way into her thoughts.  
Just a text from him would have her smiling like a fool. Every time he called her babe or baby or said something sweet to her it would send butterflies fluttering like mad through her stomach. And then, Sakura learned just what it meant to be jealous.  
Sasuke had found himself a girlfriend and Sakura had been crushed by the news. After all, how could she possibly have a chance with Sasuke when they didn't even live in the same state, how could she compete with a girl that was right in front of him? She didn't even think that he was interested in her in the slightest.  
Just because she was interested in him did not mean that he would be interested in her as well. Sakura was positive that he only saw her as a friend, or worse, like a sister. It broke her heart to know that she would never be the girl he was looking for.  
About 4 months later Sasuke's girlfriend broke it off. For what reason, Sakura never found out. Sasuke wouldn't say, only that he was mad about the way she had done it. Sakura had gone through mixed emotions in hearing the news. Anger for his now ex having hurt him the way she did, confusion for not understanding why his ex would be dumb enough to let him go, - after all, given the chance, Sakura would never let him go- and guilt. Sakura felt guilt for the rush of happiness that had filled her. If his ex was going to be stupid enough to let him go then that meant that he was single again.  
Was this Sakura's chance to tell Sasuke about her feelings for him? In a way, she felt like it was. She wouldn't tell him the full extent of her feelings for him -after all, telling someone that you've fallen for them just after they get out of a relationship is a bad idea- but she would tell him that she liked him as more than a friend.  
Nothing had changed between the two upon Sakura's request once she finally told him. She wouldn't have been able to handle him backing away from her and changing the way he acted. She liked him yes, but that didn't mean that he needed to change in order to keep from hurting her. Changing the way he acted would have only hurt her more than he probably even understood.  
Sakura was tired of just being friends and wanted to at least show Sasuke that she was just as good as those other girls. If not better, because she wanted him no matter their differences, no matter the flaws.  
Because Sakura loved Sasuke for who he was.

Ino loved that she was helping her best friend finally see Sasuke in person. She hadn't been fond of him when she first learned of Sakura's interest in him because she couldn't understand why he didn't return her best friend's feelings.  
Though her mind had changed once she'd gotten the chance to talk to him herself one night. He seemed like a nice enough guy and she'd gotten to see how he reacted to Sakura. Or at least see how he acted through his words.  
Ino wanted to see how the two would react to each other once they were finally face to face, because she had a feeling that over this next week, Sakura and Sasuke would become inseparable. She also had hopes of seeing how Sasuke really feels for her pink haired best friend.  
Ino thought that once Sasuke got to spend real time with Sakura: seeing her face to face each day, spending the hours of the day exploring together, being able to hold her at night like they'd talked about. That he wouldn't be able to let her go when it was time for them to head back to Washington.  
Not without feeling like he was losing some part of his heart in the process.

The plan was for them to dive nonstop from their shared apartment in the northwest corner of Washington to their hotel along the outskirts of Los Angeles, California. Ino was doing all of the driving, mainly because even at 22, Sakura still didn't have her driver's license. It wasn't a big deal to Ino, she enjoyed driving anyway.  
Sakura had been so excited about their trip when they first started driving that she had literally been bouncing in the passenger seat. Ino adored her best friend's childish nature and couldn't wait to see the on her face when she finally got to look Sasuke in the eyes.  
They had taken off late last night in order to avoid some of the heavier traffic through out the state and so that they would have a full day to explore on their first real day in L.A.. During the daylight hours of their drive Sakura had been taking dozens of pictures through the window of the scenery passing by and dancing in place to the music from Ino's ipod.  
That had been hours ago though. While the sun had only gone down about an hour ago, it was summer and that meant that it was some time after 11 p.m. and Sakura had fallen asleep shortly after.  
Ino had driven into the vast city of Los Angeles about half an hour after the rosette had fallen asleep. She didn't bother to wake her for her excitement had taken most of her energy and they were going straight to their hotel for the night anyway.  
Tomorrow would be the real beginning of their adventure.

Pulling into the parking lot of the hotel that they would be staying in, Ino glanced over at the sleeping form of her best friend. Her pink curls hid most of her pretty face and her cell phone lay loosely on her lap, having fallen from her limp hands. As carefully as she could, Ino slid Sakura's phone from under her hands and climbed out of the jeep. Glancing back at her friend to make sure that she hadn't woken from the door being closed, Ino turned back to Sakura's phone and scrolled through the phone book until she came across Sasuke's name. Pressing the send button she pressed the phone to her ear and listened to it ring twice before a deep masculine voice answered.  
"Sakura?" He sounded tired himself.  
"Sorry to disappoint, it's Ino, I was wondering if you could come and help me with Sakura?" There was a momentary pause before he answered.  
"Is she okay?" Ino smiled, he defiantly cared for the rosette.  
"She's fine, just fell asleep on the way here and I don't want to have to wake her up. She killed most of her energy with her excitement in getting here." The two friends shared a laugh before he agreed to met with her in the parking lot.  
Ino told him what vehicle to look for once he got to the hotel and let him know that she was going to go check them in and take their bags to the room they would be staying in.

Within fifteen minutes both of their suitcases were up stairs and the girls were checked in for their week long stay. As Ino made her way back to her jeep she noticed a tall dark figure of a man leaning against her little red jeep. The figured stood at her approach and smiled kindly at her.  
"Ino?" He questioned.  
"The one and only." The tall man held his hand out for her.  
"I'm Sasuke, it's nice to finally met you." Ino shook his hand and returned his smile.  
"Same. Trust me, I've heard a lot about you." Sasuke chucked, his dark eyes shifting to Sakura's sleeping form in the jeep behind him.  
"Do you need help with anything else?" Ino shook her head.  
"Nah, it's just our backpacks that are left, as long as you can get her I can manage." Sasuke nodded and moved around the jeep and opened the door as quietly as he could. From the drivers side Ino unbuckled Sakura for him and reached into the back of the jeep for their backpacks.  
Doing a quick double check to make sure she had everything and that the jeep was all locked up before Ino met Sasuke at the front of the vehicle. Sakura was still sound asleep with her head now resting on Sasuke's shoulder.  
Ino rolled her eyes, she much have really killed all of her energy. Sakura was normally a light sleeper, there was no way Sasuke would have been able to pull her from the jeep without waking her otherwise.  
Ignoring the odd looks they received as they walked through the lobby, Ino lead Sasuke to the elevators and as the doors slid closed with a ding she turned to him.  
"We have two separate beds, so you are more than welcome to stay with us for the night. I did call rather late after all." Sasuke nodded gratefully.  
"Would love to." the trio's elevator reached the third floor and Ino lead Sasuke down the hall until they came up to room _'324'_. Sliding the card key through the lock Ino held the door open for Sasuke as she searched the wall blindly for a light switch. She found the light not far from the doorway and flipped it on to better help Sasuke find his way to one of the beds without tripping.  
While Sasuke was busy settling Sakura down on the bed closest to the window Ino took a moment to look around the room.  
It was a decent sized room for a hotel. Both of the beds lay against the side wall on the left hand side with a nightstand situated between them. Across from the beds was the standard hotel room TV sitting atop a small table and closest to the door was a small closet and the bathroom. The back wall consisted of a large window and a lounge chair. All in all, it really was a decent room, Ino had stayed in smaller.  
Ino's blue eyes trailed over to Sasuke who was now carefully pulling the comforter from the bed that he would be sharing with Sakura. It was summer, it's not like it would be needed.  
At the foot of each bed Ino had placed her and Sakura's suitcases and ironically enough, Sasuke had lain the rosette on the bed her case lay before.  
"Sakura has some sweats you can wear in her case, trust me, they're big enough for you. I'll get them." he nodded and sat next to Sakura while Ino dug around for the sweats.  
The sweats where easy enough for Ino to find and not long after Sasuke and Ino were climbing into bed to follow their friend into the world of dreams. Ino watched quietly as Sasuke slid under the sheet and snuggled up with Sakura's sleeping form. Unconsciously Sakura snuggled even closer to the young man she'd fallen for, her head coming to rest on his chest and one of her hands fisting some of his shirt. Sasuke sent a tired smirk Ino's way as he reached to turn off the lamp closest to him before laying his head back to sleep.  
Continuing to watch the two of them for another moment, Ino noticed how content the both of them seemed to be. Even with one of them being completely unaware of the other's presence. Sakura would surely be in for a surprise when morning came.

7 a.m. rolled around and the sun had risen over the city of Los, Angeles. A sliver of golden light made it's way through the curtains of room _'324'_ and Sakura slowly began to stir. It registered in the back of her mind that she was laying comfortably in a bed, but she didn't recall ever walking to her and Ino's room.  
A thought she easily brushed aside, Sakura had gotten the best night of sleep she could remember having had in a long time and how she made it to the room was really of no concern. She snuggled deeper into the warmth of her bed and was about to fall back asleep when she heard something odd.  
Though her eyes remained closed, Sakura's eyebrows frowned together. It sounded oddly like a heartbeat, but pillows don't have heartbeats. Her confusion escalated even more when she heard a deep sigh from beneath her ear.  
Startled, Sakura moved to push herself away from the bed but found strong masculine arms tightening around her slim waist instead. Before she could let the scream bubbling up slip past her lips a familiar voice froze it within her throat.  
"Good morning, sleeping beauty." Green eyes shot up to met black and Sakura's lips parted in shock.  
"S-Sasuke?" That wonderful smile of his that she loved so -and had seen only in pictures up until now- lit up the young man's face. One of Sakura's hands reached up to trace gently down the side of his face, from his temple to his stubble covered jaw.  
"I'm not dreaming, am I?" Sasuke's laugh rumbled through his chest and shook Sakura in the process. He kind of liked the idea of her dreaming of him. Sasuke watched those pretty green eyes light up and couldn't help the joy that flooded his heart as Sakura threw her arms around his neck in her excitement.  
"Sasuke!" A groan came from the other bed and Sakura giggled as Ino was awakened by her best friend's sudden out burst. Ino glanced over at the two and couldn't help but smile. She may not have been happy about being woken up, but she had never seen Sakura so happy and that made up for it ten fold.

An hour and a half later the trio was up and headed out for a day on the beach. It was hot out and the girls weren't used to the California sun like Sasuke was, and what better way to cool off than by heading to the beach?  
Sasuke was probably just as excited about going to the beach as the girls were. Not only because he loved the beach, but because he would get to experience Sakura's first trip to a sandy beach with her.  
Sakura lived on the coast of Washington, but hidden from the ocean by most of the San Juan Islands. The beaches in her area, while they had sand, were mostly rock and drift wood. Beautiful in it's own way, but nothing like the warm sandy beaches of California.  
Leaving early for the beach meant less traffic and more likely to get a good parking spot. It was summer after all and who didn't enjoy sleeping in during the summer.  
That's what the trio were betting on at least. It also meant more time at the beach because the rest of their trip would be spent exploring L.A. and the area surrounding.

Both of the girls had changed into their swimsuits before they had left the hotel because they both knew it would only make things easier. Besides, who didn't do that anymore? They both wore shorts and tank tops over their bikinis because neither of them felt the need to show off as much flesh as was possible without getting into trouble for indecent exposure like so many people their age seemed to do. You shouldn't have to run around practically naked to impress someone of interest.  
They had run to Sasuke's quickly so that he had the chance to change as well and allowed him to grab a few things he would need. Ino later reluctantly agreeing to let him drive to the beach. It would be easier and quicker after all to have the local driving.  
Upon their arrival at the beach a gasp of excitement escaped Sakura's lips. It was even more beautiful in person. Her excitement to feel the warm sand beneath her feet had time suddenly feeling like it was going in slow motion.  
Sasuke and Ino shared a smile, the rosette's excitement was a highly contagious thing to her friends.  
Sakura knew she should be helping her friends grab the supplies they brought for their day at the beach, but it was like the sandy shore had some sort of pull on her. She took slow tentative steps from the paved parking lot to the warm sand, as if at any moment she would wake up back at home to a typical overcast day.  
Sasuke watched Sakura from the back of Ino's little red jeep. She was just too adorable as she held her pretty curls out of her face and removed her sandals at the edge of the sand. She was far prettier in person, her smile making his heart fill with warmth and those eyes…Those green eyes were simply bewitching and had butterflies fluttering in his stomach every single time they looked his way.  
"You like her." It wasn't a question and Sasuke found himself unable to meet Ino's eyes.  
"Of course I do, what kind of best friend would I be if I didn't?" He didn't know Ino very well, but he didn't have to look up at her to know she was rolling her eyes at him.  
"You know what I meant." He did know and to his great relief Sakura called to them before Ino got the change to interrogate him any further.  
"Are you two coming or am I going to have to spend the whole day alone on the beach and vulnerable to any random guy that decides he wants to take me home?" Sasuke and Ino's eyes met at that statement and before Ino could make out the look that crossed his face, Sasuke's arms were full and he was jogging over to the place where Sakura stood.  
Ino sighed but followed none the less, grabbing her towel and making sure the jeep was locked up tight. She caught up to the other two and made sure that Sasuke saw the roll of her eyes. Fine, he didn't have to admit to it now, because by the end of the week he wouldn't be willing to let Sakura go so easily.  
Sakura dropped her sandals next to her towel that was now lain out between Sasuke's and Ino's. Today was the perfect day for the beach, though she supposed that almost any day in southern California during the summer would be a good day. Around them, Sakura noticed families with their small children and groups of people from all age groups. The beach was busy with life, more so than the beaches at home that her and Ino were used to.  
While people gathered at the beaches back home, it was for picnics in the grassy forested areas off shore with a few families looking for beach glass and sand dollars among all the tiny rocks. The sand was far different too. The warm golden sand under Sakura's feet was nothing like back home.  
Normally back home you would have to wait for the tide to go out before you got any real sand to play with and what you got wasn't warm and dry like what she stood on now. It was dark in color, wet and in the colder months it held a rather icy chill.  
The warmth of the sun beat down just a little harder and Sakura was brought back to reality. This wasn't northwest Washington and cold ocean water would feel good against her skin.  
As if reading her thoughts Sasuke's arms circled her waist and he tossed her smaller frame up onto his shoulder, holding her tight as he made his way to the water. Sakura lightly smacked his back as a shocked gasped escaped her and out of instinct she fought against his hold.  
"Sasuke! Please don't!" Sakura shot a pleading glance Ino's way but her friend only shrugged and smiled at her.  
"Ino! Help me, won't you?!" Ino laughed and shook her head.  
"What do you want me to do? He's bigger than me!" The rosette crossed her arms and was about to say something in return when she noticed that Sasuke's legs were now submerged in the cool ocean water. Her breath caught in her throat, she knew what was coming next.  
Like in slow motion Sasuke lifted her from his shoulder, still holding her to him, turned to face the shore and let himself fall back into the waves. Sakura's arms flew around his neck and she clung to him as they met the water.  
A moment later both of them surfaced, taking in a refreshing breath of air. They were both sitting on their knees in the water, the level different to each of them due to height. Sakura sent Sasuke a playful glare before she pushed at his chest.  
"What did you do that for?" Sasuke just shrugged with an adorable crooked little smile on his face.  
"You looked hot." Sakura's eyebrow rose at the double meaning.  
"I looked hot?" He nodded, the smile never leaving his face. Sakura's face flushed with color and she tackled him back into the water.  
When they came back up this time they were both laughing. Sasuke held her tight around the waist as he watched her head fall back in laughter, he loved the sound of it. Her head came back up slowly and her arms wrapped loosing around his neck, a flirty little smile on her lips.  
Sakura tucked a wet curl behind her ear before her small hand moved to run through his dark hair, green eyes meeting black. Sasuke's breath caught in his throat. Man, did she look pretty as she smiled at him from within the circle of his arms. He could get used to this. The sunlight reflecting off of the water made the green of her eyes stand out even more and sparkle like emeralds.  
A sudden thought came back to him and he had to agree with it even more now. He remembered telling Sakura she had perfect eyes and now, up close and personal with her, he couldn't help but agree with what he had once said. She truly had the prettiest eyes he had ever seen and he knew, personally, he'd never find a prettier pair.  
Sakura's fingers traced down the side of his face again, much like they had that morning and she leaned in closer to him. Sasuke found his heart beating rapidly within his chest. Was she going to kiss him? Did he want to kiss her? They were just friends after all, right? So he shouldn't want to, but he found that he did. In this very moment, he wanted to know what her kiss was like, he wanted to know if her kiss was a sweet as he somehow knew it would be.  
Then her lips were on him, but not were he found himself wanting them. She kissed his cheek lightly, pulling back and running her hand back through his dark hair again. Her cute little nose wrinkled up in an adorable way and she giggled before pulling back from his arms and heading back toward Ino on shore.  
Sasuke sighed heavily and ran his own hand through his hair in frustration. What was wrong with him?! She was one of his best friends for crying out loud! One of his precious people that he couldn't live his life without, he couldn't afford to think of her in such ways. If something were to happen between them he might lose her and that was something he wasn't willing to live with.  
"Are you coming?" Her voice rang back at him from the shore. He stood and followed, trying to shake the thoughts he was having of her before he reached the two girls.  
"Earth to Sasuke, come in Sasuke." Ino's voice broke through his thoughts and he smiled down at the two.  
"I spaced out for a minute there, didn't I?" He didn't miss the knowing look Ino had given him and he couldn't help the small nod he gave her. Ino smiled triumphantly in return. Yes, he did have feelings for Sakura, but he wasn't going to lose her friendship over it.  
"It's alright, Sakura over here is like captain of the space out team!" Ino laughed as Sakura elbowed her in the side but preceded laughed as well.  
"That may be true, but it wasn't nice." Sakura pouted childishly for a moment when her eyes suddenly drifted to something off to the right of Sasuke's shoulder.  
Ino noticed and followed her graze to a good looking guy walking up to them who seemed to be about the same age as Sasuke. Ino turned her gaze to Sasuke to notice he had turned to see what Sakura had been looking at and his shoulders had gone stiff. Ahh, so he did get jealous.  
The young man that was walking toward them was good looking. Tall -close to the same height as Sasuke-, red hair and well toned golden skin that could make any girl's mouth water. And his reddish brown eyes were glued on Sakura.  
Sasuke unconsciously stepped closer to Sakura, he didn't like the way this guy was eyeing her.  
"Hey, I'm Sasori and I wanted to come see if you'd like go get something to eat with me." Well he was certainly a to-the-point person. Ino watched as Sakura's lips parted in shock and Sasuke wrapped his arm around her waist protectively.  
"Dude, back off. Can't you see she's got company?" Sasuke was annoyed to say the least. Who did this guy think he was? What guy just walks up to a girl and asks her out when she's so obviously with someone? The guy, Sasori, gave Sasuke a raised eyebrow look, as of asking why he should care.  
"Yeah, so? I wasn't asking you." His eyes turned back to Sakura and he gave her his best flirty smile.  
"What do you say, doll face?" Sakura's nose wrinkled in disgust and Ino giggled. Sakura hated being called 'doll face'. Sakura had never been one for pet names, especially from guys who didn't even know her.  
"Excuse me?" Sakura's eyes narrowed and her hands crossed under her chest. Yup, this guy was going to get it. Ino moved around so she had a better view. This guy was going to get it and she had a front row seat.  
"I said-" Sakura cut him off, not even giving him a chance to repeat himself.  
"I know _exactly_ what you said. Do I look like a doll to you?" Sasori opened his mouth to reply but Sakura raised her hand to stop him.  
"Don't even. I'm not doll face, baby, babe, sexy, angel, princess or whatever other ridiculous name you might think to call me. Obviously you don't know how to ask a girl for her name. That's fine, I can understand you don't have a lot of brains, it happens when you spend more time checking yourself out in the mirror than getting an education." Sasori's mouth fell open in shock.  
"I just thought-" Again Sakura cut him off.  
"Yeah, I bet that hurt too. You probably thought that I was hot and slow like you and figured I would easily go anywhere with you because you're clearing in love with yourself and are just looking for some ass. It seems to me you need to get your eyes check. I'm clearly with someone and am not interested in being someone's plaything. Now why don't you move along so we can all pretend that this never happened?" Sasori's mouth was still hanging open like an idiot as he stared dumbfounded at Sakura.  
She gave him an annoyed smile and to add insult to injury she turned in Sasuke's arm and leaned into him, her hand coming to rest on his chest.  
"Want to go get something to eat, babe?" Sasuke didn't know what to say, he never would have thought his sweet little cherry blossom would have had it in her to tell this guy off. The trio heard an annoyed grunt come from Sasori and turned to watch him walk away.  
"That was amazing!" Ino cheered in excitement. She jumped up from her spot on the sand and threw her arms around Sakura for a hug. Sakura laughed and hugged her back.  
"That was pretty good, wasn't it?" Sasuke came out of his daze and laughed along with the girls.  
"I didn't think you had it in you, that was simply epic!" Sakura gave him a shy smile and shrugged.  
"I don't like pet names and it annoyed me that he completely ignored the fact that you're here. Besides, I'm kinda already interested in someone." A light blush colored her cheeks as Sakura's and Sasuke's eyes met for a brief moment before she turned back to Ino. Happiness flooded his's chest, she liked him enough to pass up a guy like that?  
Sakura glanced back at him over her shoulder as Ino dragged her back to the jeep to grab their cooler. Sasuke caught a glimpse of those pretty green eyes again and his heart skipped in his chest. Words from a letter Sakura had written to him on his birthday came to mind, _'it isn't a choice, you can't help who you fall for'_, and he knew that she had been right. He couldn't help how he was feeling about her. Couldn't change how his heart skipped and butterflies fluttered wildly in his belly from just a smile she sent his way. He was slowly starting to understand the burden of her feelings for him.

The trio enjoyed sandwiches and fruit salad for lunch, joking and laughing as they did. Sasuke not being able to help but steal glances at the rosette whenever the girls' attention had been else where. It hadn't bothered him like he thought it would while the girls had spent a good deal of their lunch time checking out the guys that walked by. It didn't bother him because every time a 'hot' guy walked by and Ino would start to ramble about the things she would like to do to him, Sakura would glance back at him and roll her eyes. Sakura would agree with Ino but say nothing more about the guy and Sasuke found it to be reassuring. It was like she was silently reminding both Sasuke and Ino that she already had feelings for someone and that she wasn't really interested in anyone else. It made Sasuke's heart swell.  
After a while of people watching Sakura turned to face Sasuke suddenly as if she had just remembered something. She crawled across the towels to the cooler at his side and tossed open the lid. A childish smile grew across her face and reached in to pull out a box of cupcakes. Sasuke rolled his eyes playfully, she was just too adorable.  
"We have cupcakes!" Sakura's little out burst had most of the people around them glancing their way, but she didn't seem affected in the slightest. Of course, Sakura had never honestly cared what others thought of her.  
Ino tried to snatch the box out of Sakura's hands.  
"Sakura, I think you're hyper enough. Do you really need a cupcake?" Sakura threw a pout behind her shoulder at Ino.  
"It doesn't matter if I need it, I want it." The blonde shook her head but let Sakura have a cupcake anyway. Sakura smiled triumphantly and handed one to both Ino and Sasuke before sitting back and unwrapping the cupcake as if it were a present.  
Ino raised and eyebrow at her friend.  
"What are you doing?" The rosette didn't even look up as she answered.  
"I'm preparing to savor my cupcake, duh." Ino snorted and playfully pushed her friend's shoulder.  
"You are a dork." Sakura smiled brightly before taking a bite. Her eyes closed as she enjoyed the sweet taste of the cupcake and she shrugged at her friend's words.  
A playful glint sparkled in her eyes when they opened and she swiped her finger through the frosting on her cupcake before she smudged her frosting covered finger from the tip of Hayden's nose to his chin.  
Before Ino had the change to move Sakura had repeated her actions, smudging frosting on her best friend's nose.  
"Hey!" Ino tacked Sakura back against the towels and smudged frosting against the rosette's cheek for revenge and both of the girls laid back laughing at their childish behavior.  
Once the laughter had calmed Sasuke held out his hand to help both of the girls up. Ino dug through one of the bags they had brought looking for napkins of some sort so everyone could clean themselves up.  
Sakura sat on her knees in front of Sasuke and smiled softly. Resting her hands against Sasuke's thighs she leaned into him and licked some of the frosting from his chin. Sasuke froze instantly at the contact.  
That was an rather bold mood from his shy little cherry blossom. She laughed at his shocked face and winked at him as Ino handed her a napkin, having missed the little 'incident'.  
Sasuke tried to shake off the feelings that had hit him as he'd watched Sakura lean into him. It was like slow motion as soon as she had touched him and the feel of her soft pink tongue on his chin had made him feel things he wasn't ready to face.  
Sasuke was brought out of his thoughts by the girls giggling over a man who had been walking by who obviously thought he looked good in a speedo when he clearly didn't.

Sakura and Ino's week in L.A. had come and gone in what felt like the blink of an eye to the trio. Each day filled with adventure and, for Sakura and Sasuke, many more small moments like their first day on the beach. Sakura didn't want to leave but she had to be at work in three days and wanted to be able to have a day of relaxation before she had to go back. Her heart hurt and some part of her wished that she had never talked Ino into this trip.  
Sakura had known that in coming down to L.A. and spending time with Sasuke that she was dooming herself to fall for him even more. She knew that her heart would probably break after spending so much time with him and that's exactly what she felt now.  
Ino couldn't stand how broken her best friend looked as they packed their belongings back into the jeep for the long drive home.  
Sasuke had come to help the girls lug their suitcases down from the hotel and he looked just as lost and broken to Ino as Sakura. She knew that his real feelings for the rosette would come out during this trip, but if he was going to do something about it was something that she couldn't see.  
Not long after everything had been packed into the back of the jeep they had driven over to Sasuke's place to drop him off and say their final goodbyes. Or at least their goodbyes until they could see each other again. The trio climbed out of the jeep after a few moments of silence.  
A few of Sasuke's friends had come over to say goodbye as well. Sakura and Ino had fit in very well with Sasuke's friends and most of their trip had been spent with Sasuke's group taking the girls around and showing them the city. Even his friends had grown attached to the girls and wished they didn't have to go.  
Ino was the first to say her goodbyes, going about and hugging everyone in the group and giving her number out to those who wanted to stay in touch. She came to Sasuke last and gave him a tight hug before turning to Sakura, rubbing her arm in comfort.  
Ino knew Sakura was on the verge of tears as she climbed into the jeep and waited for her friend to say her goodbyes.  
This was going to be the hardest part of the trip and she knew that Sakura was going to want to go without delay so no one would see her cry.  
Sakura took a deep breath and looked around at everyone that was standing around waiting for her to say goodbye. She smiled sadly and started at the farthest end from Sasuke.  
"I had such a good time. We had such a good time and I can't wait until I can come back and see all of you again." Her voice was so sincere and sad that it had everyone else smiling sadly too.  
"We're all going to miss you guys too. Feel free to come back at any time." one of them said as she hugged each and every person in the group. Much like Ino had done, the rosette made sure that everyone had her number so they could call keep in touch until the next time the two of them could visit.  
The closer Sakura got to Sasuke the sadder she looked. All of Sasuke's friends could see what was going on between the two, but what they all wondered was if their friend was going to step up to the plate or let the girl go.  
The conflict of emotions that Sasuke was feeling was also clear to his friends, but all they could do was hope he made the right choice.  
Finally Sakura reached her crush and for a moment they just stared at each other, both oblivious to the emotions the other was feeling and yet somehow totally in tune to one another. Sasuke couldn't take it anymore and scooped her up into his arms, hugging her smaller frame to him as tight to his being as he could.  
They had reacted for one another at the same time, Sakura's arms had flown around his neck as he'd picked her up and she wished desperately that she didn't have to leave.  
"I'm going to miss you more than you know." Sasuke mumbled before he slowly let her go, her hands coming to rest on his chest. Sakura smiled sadly up at him and it made his heart crack.  
"I'll miss you more. You'll text me, wont you?" Sasuke nodded numbly though he knew Sakura already knew the answer.  
"You better believe it." One of Sakura's little hands fisted in his shirt, reminding him of the first night he held her while she slept and every other night he'd stayed with them in their hotel room so that he could cuddle with her. Her little hand pulled Sasuke down to eye level.  
"You better call too." Sasuke couldn't help but laugh and nod in reply.  
"You better answer your phone when I call you." Tears were beginning to build in Sakura's eyes and she knew she was going to have to go. With a heavy sigh she jumped up and hugged Sasuke fiercely one last time, one of her hands combing through his soft dark hair.  
"I wish you could give me a change." She mumbled against his ear before she pulled back. She knew he would know what she meant. The hand that had combed through his hair cupped the side of his face as she stood on her tip toes. With all the courage she could muster she leaned in and kissed the corner of his mouth before he pulled away from her.  
Green eyes met black for the millionth time and she held his gaze as she spoke so that he knew she meant what she said.  
"_I love you_, Sasuke." Sakura stepped out of his reach and without a look back moved around to the other side of the jeep and climbed in.  
Sasuke stood dumbfound as his friends circled around him and they all waved as Ino started her little red jeep, pulling away from the curb.  
He just barely managed to wave after them and see Sakura's face one last time as she turned to face forward in the jeep and they disappeared around the corner.  
Did he really just let her drive away? Sasuke stood frozen in his spot staring after the little red jeep that was no longer in sight.  
He'd taken Sakura's words to heart and was trying to figure out why he'd never given her a chance before.  
One of his friends smacked the back of his head to grab his attention. Hayden glared but acknowledged him none the less.  
"Are you _really_ going to let her get away?" Sasuke sighed as he and his friends walked into his home, taking seats around the living room. All eyes trained on Sasuke.  
"What do you want me to do?" He asked frustrated.  
"You like the girl, don't you?" With his elbows rested on his knees, Sasuke dropped his face to his hands.  
"Of course I do, she's one of my best friends." One of Sasuke's female friends smacked his leg from her seat on the floor beside him.  
"Don't be stupid, _Uchiha_, you know what Naruto meant." Of course he knew what Naruto meant, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to face the facts.  
"She isn't going to wait forever for you and someday some other guy is going to make a move and she'll go with it. Do you really want to see her end up with someone else?" A pang of jealousy hit Sasuke at the thought of his cherry blossom agreeing to be some other guy's girl. He didn't like the idea at all, but they lived in completely different states. As if reading his mind the female next to him spoke up.  
"Love knows no distance, you two talk everyday already and Ino was talking about the two of them moving down here within the next several months. It's clear as day to the rest of us Sasuke. You've never been as happy as you are with her, don't let that get away from you." Sasuke took in the words of his friends and thought about how he felt without Sakura. About how he already wanted to see her again and most importantly about how she made him feel. His friends were right, he had never been this happy before and he didn't want to let that go. He wouldn't let it go if he had anything to do with it.  
Sasuke stood abruptly, startling his friends in the process.  
"I need to get to Washington."  
"That's our boy!" they all cheered.

A little less than 24 hours later Ino pulled into the parking lot of hers and Sakura's apartment complex. Sakura had silently cried herself to sleep a few odd hours ago and she didn't blame her. Her best friend was crushed having to leave the man she had fallen for and had been crying the whole drive back. She had meant to stay up and keep Ino company but all her crying had drained her of her energy.  
Ino had really thought that Sasuke would have told the rosette how he felt about her before they left but for some reason he just didn't. She wasn't sure if he was still trying to figure things out or if he had simply frozen up. It didn't matter now she supposed.  
They were back home in Washington and he was over 1,200 miles away. He couldn't just come over and fix things.  
Pulling the keys from the ignition, Ino reached over and gently shook her best friend awake. She didn't want to wake the poor girl, she seemed to be sleeping decently enough and she didn't want to bring her friend back into the real world so soon.  
Sakura's sad eyes opened and turned slowly to look at Ino who smiled in sympathy.  
"I'm sorry, Sakura, but we're home now." The rosette didn't say anything just nodded and slowly unbuckled herself before climbing out of the jeep and meeting Ino around back. The girls slipped their backpacks over their shoulders and dragged their suitcases behind them as Ino locked up the jeep and they headed for the stairs leading up to their front door.  
It was still pretty early in the morning since they had left L.A. some time before noon and had driven all through the night. The early morning sun shone brightly through the trees and lit the way up the stairs.  
Normally at this hour their would be kids busying themselves with getting ready for school and waiting at the entrance of the complex for the bus. But it was still summer and most of those kids were probably still tucked in bed dreaming away. Something Ino was more than willing to do at the moment.  
Walking quietly down the hallway of apartment doors Ino stopped dead in her tracks. The sun like hadn't lit up the hall very well and the light by their door had gone out before they left. In the shadowy darkness that was their door a tall figure of a man stood. All of Ino's and Sakura's friends weren't expecting them to be home until tomorrow so it couldn't have been one of their friends.  
Sakura hadn't noticed Ino's abrupt stop and had stumbled into her. Her head shot up to ask her friend what was up only to see what had stopped Ino. The same thoughts that had occurred to Ino came to Sakura in that instant. But before either of them could think of what to do the figure stepped forward out of the shadows and into the light.  
Both of the girls gasped at the man standing before them. It couldn't possibly be him couldn't it?  
In a heart beat Sakura had dropped both her backpack and suitcase to the ground and leapt into the man's arms, tears once more rolling down her pale cheeks.  
"_Sasuke!_ What are you doing- _how_ did you get here?" Sasuke's chuckle met both girls' ears as his arms wrapped tight around Sakura. It was in that moment that Sasuke knew he had made the right decision.  
"I had to see you again, I made a huge mistake just letting you go the way I did." Sakura repeatedly kissed both of Sasuke's cheeks. His dark eyes moved to Ino as he addressed her.  
"Hello, Ino." The blone nodded and grabbed a hold of Sakura's bags as well before moving to the door to let them all in before someone came out to yell at them for being too loud at this early hour.  
"It's about damn time." Ino mumbled loud enough for the raven haired man to hear while she unlocked the door and pushed it open.  
Sasuke just chuckled and carefully walked in behind Ino with his little cherry blossom still wrapped around him.  
Ino went to close the door when she noticed another suitcase sitting just outside the door and her eyes turned to glance at Sasuke and Sakura sitting on the couch cuddling together.  
"Is this your bag?" Sasuke looked up to Ino and gave a sheepish smile.  
"You don't mind if I stay for a while do you?" Ino pretended to think for a moment before pulling his bag in.  
"As long as you two can keep things quiet." Sakura's head snapped up in horror and a crimson blush colored her cheeks along with Sasuke's.  
"Ino!" Ino just shrugged and winked at the two of them before locking the door and heading off toward her room. The rosette watched her best friend walk back to her room and heard Ino's bedroom door click closed before she turned her gaze back to Sasuke who had been busy playing with her smaller fingers.  
"You came all this way to cuddle?" Sasuke chuckled and raised a hand to the side of Sakura's face, rubbing his thumb over her bottom lip and tucking some of her cherry blossom hair behind her ear.  
"Well, that…and this." Before Sakura could ask what, Sasuke tipped her chin up and their lips met in a kiss that stole the breath from her chest and had her heart racing.  
There was a spark to his kiss that Sakura had never experienced before and she could help but wonder if this is was what everyone was talking about. She fell into his kiss easily, wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her fingers in his dark hair.  
Sasuke's hands fell from cupping her face to her waist, pulling her across him to sit on his lap. Sakura gasped at the sudden move, causing Sasuke to smirk into the kiss.  
Finally, as if reading each other's need for oxygen, the two pulled apart. Sakura rest her forehead against Sasuke's, eyes still closed, and chewed her lower lip.  
When her eyes finally opened she was met by Sasuke's beautiful black eyes. She ran her fingers lovingly through his soft hair as they studied each other's eyes.  
"I came all this way, Sakura, to tell you _I love you_." Sakura squeezed her eyes closed and a single tear slide down her cheek. The raven haired male cupped her cheek and rubbed the tear away.  
"Hey now, no tears love." Sakura's eyes fluttered open and she gave Sasuke a confused look.  
"I don't understand." Sasuke reached for one of her hands and placed it against his chest over his heart before stealing another kiss.  
"I realized after you left that I _didn't_ want you to go. I love being with you and the moment you were out of sight…I don't know, it was like my heart was ripped clean out of my chest. I thought about the likely hood of when I'd be able to see you again and the distance between us. I thought about what you said to me and I thought about how I felt about you. I thought about you moving on and finding someone else because I was too stupid to make a move. I _can't stand_ the thought of you with someone else and even though this distance between us kills me, _you_ are worth it." Sakura started at him in shock. She never thought that this would happen, no matter how hard she wished for it.  
"Sasuke…I-" But he cut her off.  
"I'm not giving you a chance," Sakura's face fell, "I'm asking you to give_ me_ a chance instead. Please, give me the chance I don't deserve." Sakura's stomach flipped for what must have been the millionth time already, completely at a lose for words. She did the only thing she could thing of. She pressed her lips to his in answer. Long distance or not, they both knew in that moment that they could make it work, because love knows no distance.

The End.

* * *

_Judging by how tired I am (and the fact that my phone reads 2am XD), I'm going to admit this probably isn't my best work but I hope that those of you who were kind enough to read it were still able to enjoy it =]. Oh, and in case anyone was wondering, Sasuke is three years older than Sakura in this tale. _


End file.
